Indian researchers looking at cassava as potential ethanol feedstock

In India, the Hindu newspaper reports researchers from ICAR-Central Tuber Crops Research Institute are looking at cassava as a potential ethanol feedstock as the country diversifies the crops it uses for ethanol to include more starches such as rice and cereals rather than just sugarcane-based. In the late 1990s, a cassava-based ethanol plant was set up in Palakkad, but its eventual failure has made the crop an unpopular potential option. Tamil Nadu and Kerala already produce significant volumes of cassava and expansion is occurring in Maharashtra, making the possibility to reintroduce cassava for ethanol production potentially viable again.